Death Ship Quest

by William Zellmann

  “Yes, mistress,” Kas replied, unruffled. “My word and that of the survivors of the civilian freighter the Glories were attacking. And the testimony of my crew, and the various sensor logs.”

  Panic surged across the woman’s face, fading almost instantly as she regained control. A dark scowl had settled on Ta-Lank’s face. “Survivors?” She said, struggling to appear calm. “But the Gl . . . I mean, we were informed that no survivors were found when the wreckage was examined.”

  Kas nodded. “That’s true, mistress. No survivors were found because we had taken them with us in order to preserve security. They are two Alliance citizens, crew of the free trader Lady Jane. Since we were unable to release them at Remor, they are at present aboard Vir Rekesh. I’m sure they would both be happy to testify.”

  The woman glanced nervously at Ta-Lank, who was glowering at Kas. This was not going as scripted. Ta-Lank raised his hand and stroked his chin for a moment. Then his eyes narrowed and he raised his head.

  “Yes, well,” He began, “We’ll see about that. We will obviously have to subpoena those logs and carefully examine your report to higher authority. I think we can defer further questioning until those documents and memory crystals have been carefully examined.

  “There are more urgent matters to deal with anyway. You are aware that your vessels are under medical quarantine. The military may go off adventuring, but the senate takes very seriously its duty to protect the citizens of the Empire from the consequences of those hastily conceived and ill-advised adventures.

  “Accordingly, the senate has assembled a board consisting of two dozen of the most skilled and prominent medical practitioners in the Empire. You will make available to this board all documents and logs relating to the plague. You will also insure the presence of all medical personnel now aboard your vessels for questioning.

  “When, and only when, that board determines that there is absolutely no risk of the plague spreading to the Empire at large your ships and personnel will be released from quarantine. Until that time, your vessels have been declared plague ships. Be very careful, Commodore. You have a reputation for lacking respect for higher authority. Nevertheless, this time there will be no nonsense. Try to power up one engine, try to launch one boat, and both your vessels will be destroyed immediately.”

  Ta-Lank sat back in his chair with a satisfied expression. “I think that’s all for today, Commodore. But we will be talking again.” The image of the five senators faded, and Kas let out pent-up breath in a massive whoosh.

  Less than an hour later, the head of Ta-Lank’s medical board, a Dr. Nol Sho-Tra called. Sho-Tra was a portly, elderly red-faced man with an officious manner. He had called to arrange for the delivery of all records relating to the plague, and to arrange interviews with every member of the medical team aboard Rekesh.

  Kas kept the man on the com while he summoned Dr. Ro-Lecton. This promised to be interesting.

  Ro-Lecton appeared, and Sho-Tra repeated his demands in a peremptory tone. As he spoke, Ro-Lecton’s eyes widened, and the little man swelled perceptibly. “You?” He demanded in an outraged tone. “You expect me to submit our work to you? For your approval? Ridiculous!” Ro-Lecton reached around Kas and snapped off the com. Sho-Tra’s image, puffing wordlessly, faded.

  Ro-Lecton whirled on Kas. “Did you know about this, Commodore? What can that . . . that nonentity possibly imagine that he’s doing?” The old Ro-Lecton, the one who had been awakened aboard Starhopper, was back and in full blossom.

  Kas explained about the “medical board” and showed him the recording of Ta-Lank’s final words.

  The little man was furious. He called Sho-Tra back, just long enough to demand and receive a list of the members of the investigative board.

  “They’re all second-raters and mediocrities,” he told Kas. “Political types. Most of them have not seen the inside of a lab for years. This epidemiologist, for example. I guess they thought they needed one, since they are supposed to be investigating a plague. Unfortunately, the best epidemiologists in the Empire are aboard this ship. So, they dug up Tancre. The man has not done any fieldwork in over thirty years. He’s director of Public Health on Satterlee, and a pompous, self-important . . .” He cast about for a sufficiently insulting word, gave up with a wave of his hand and a sigh of exasperation.

  Kas was struggling to suppress a grin, but Ro-Lecton must have spotted the twinkle in his eye. The little man’s expression softened to one of rueful humor. “Oh, very well, Commodore. He’s much like I was when I was first awakened.” He chuckled. “I might as well warn you. The most effective counter to this nonsense is to be more pompous than they are. We’re dealing with politicians here, whether they call themselves Senator or Doctor. Fortunately,” he continued with a smile, “that is an area in which I have a certain expertise.”

  Ro-Lecton paused, and frowned. “Commodore, I have enjoyed the last few months more than I can say, and I’ve come to like and admire your fleet people. It was also rather a pleasure to have someone else bear the burden of command.

  “But now the military mission is finished. The problems we face now fall more within my area of expertise than yours. In this situation, what are normally military virtues become liabilities; the chain of command, subordination to civilian control, and so on. Could you perhaps call your Admiral and more or less throw up your hands in despair? Tell him that we are refusing to accept military authority any more, or something? Anything that minimizes your responsibility for whatever we may say or do.

  “What I’m suggesting is that you step aside and let me handle the medical aspects of the situation. I don’t want you or your people held responsible for anything I may find it necessary to do or say. Do you understand?”

  Kas nodded, and now his grin was one of genuine pleasure, tinged with anticipation. “Indeed I do understand, Doctor. And I thank you. Technically, the mission is complete, and therefore it could be argued that you are no longer under my command. And something tells me I’m going to have my hands full dealing with other aspects of the situation.” He threw up his hands. “I’d been wondering what to do about this board.”

  Ro-Lecton’s answering smile was also genuine. “Yes, well, I have a feeling I’m going to enjoy this. I’d already planned to resign and go back to field work with Nila, uh, Doctor Kor-Nashta, so what they think is their strongest threat is really no threat at all. This is going to be fun.”

  Kas shook his head and sighed. “I hope so, Doctor. However, I’ve got over three hundred people on two ships facing the largest battle fleet ever assembled. And I somehow have to defeat months of hostile, Empire-wide propaganda.”

  They talked for over an hour, making plans, and considering alternatives and consequences. Finally, Ro-Lecton stood and stretched. “Well, Commodore, I wish you luck. But now, I think I’ll let you get to work disassociating yourself from me.” He picked up the list of board members. “And I have some homework to do.”

  Kas sat lost in thought, for a few minutes. Then he had a minimum laser link established with Fleet Admiral Pankin. He explained the plan, and Pankin began to smile.

  As soon as he disconnected the laser link, he had the Comm Officer connect him via normal radio comms. Both Pankin and Ro-Lecton had agreed with him that Ta-Lank was virtually certain to be monitoring the radio comms.

  “Admiral,” he began when Pankin’s image appeared. “I must report a problem that may impact my ability to carry out my orders. Since he considers the mission complete, Doctor Ro-Lecton refuses to accept my authority over him and his people.”

  Pankin frowned. “You mean he’s resisting your commands?” The Grand Admiral’s tone was ominous.

  “No, sir,” Kas replied hastily, “that is, not exactly. He grants me only the authority of the captain of a ship on which he is a passenger. He and his people will obey any order relating to ship operation or safety -- but he specifically refuses to recognize my authority to order him to comply with this senatorial medical board.
He says that neither they nor I have authority over him. I think he’s going to refuse to cooperate with the board.”

  “I see.” Pankin’s frown had deepened. “Well, I can certainly see his point. Officially, the salvage mission ended when you filed your report.” He shrugged. “Well, Commodore, Certainly no circumstances exist under which you could use force to compel obedience. As far as I can see, this is an issue between the medical team and the senate investigating committee. I will inform Senator Ta-Lank. You can hardly be held responsible for the behavior of civilians not under your command.”

  In less than an hour, Ta-Lank was demanding to speak to Ro-Lecton. “I’m sorry, Senator,” the little man said. “I do not work for you, but directly for the Director of Public Health, a member of the Emperor’s Cabinet of Advisors. I have made my report to my superiors. I suggest you contact them if you desire a copy, and not bother me with a bunch of incompetents and has-beens.”

  Ta-Lank looked incredulous. “You refuse to comply with a senatorial subpoena? Are you mad?”

  Ro-Lecton was unfazed. “You appear to think so, sir. If you will transmit your subpoena, I will forward it to my superiors for their consideration. I’m sure that in due course, after consulting the appropriate legal authorities, they will advise me whether the Senate has the power to subpoena an official of a cabinet-level agency.”

  Ta-Lank looked furious. “You know you’ll have to comply and testify. There have been several cases . . .”

  Ro-Lecton simply shrugged. “Perhaps, sir. Nevertheless, it is my understanding that you are not ordering me to testify before your committee. I am informed that you have assembled some sort of board, comprised of medical so-called ‘experts’ of dubious ability and background, and actually expect me to give them access to our work. The very idea is ludicrous. However, when I’ve written this case up for publication in the Journal, I will be happy to send them a copy.”

  “That board is comprised of recognized experts, and has been specifically empanelled by the Imperial Senate!”

  Ro-Lecton only shrugged. “Perhaps. However, I am told that among the decisions you mentioned, there are none that mention or involve extra-governmental bodies such as your ‘Board of Incompetents’.” He controlled his face with an effort. “I’m sure that the Supreme Court can be persuaded to rule on your subpoena in, oh, two or three years.”

  Ta-Lank glowered, his eyes radiating hatred. After several more threats and tirades, he signed off, slamming the button with a vengeance.

  Ro-Lecton turned to Kas with a wide, genuine grin. “There, Commodore. Now you can concentrate on your own battles, and leave the medical war to me.”

  Kas was looking at the little man with admiration. “There will be repercussions . . .”

  Ro-Lecton nodded, the grin still wide. “I know. Moreover, I’m prepared for them. I think this is going to be the most fun I have had in years. Call it a rather spectacular method of resigning my position.”

  Kas did have his own battles to fight. Day after day, he was called to testify. His report was analyzed word by word. Night after night, he watched the heavily edited newsie coverage. Obviously, the newsies were not being given raw tapes of the sessions, but were being fed carefully slanted excerpts. The coverage was limited to short “sound bites” -- words and phrases taken out of context and matched to questions either never asked, or asked in another context. They were obviously looking for something with which to charge him.

  Unfortunately, they weren’t having much luck. The days began to drag into weeks. Lady Jane and Lar Tennig testified voluntarily, though as Alliance citizens, they were not subject to subpoena by the committee. By the time they finished, the senators flanking Ta-Lank were looking more and more unhappy.

  Chapter 18

  His bedside clock read 0425 when a call from To-Ling awakened him. “I think you should come to the bridge, sir,” she said. “Someone’s trying to establish a laser com link with us. He’s being very mysterious, but he demands to speak to you, personally.”

  Kas sighed. “All right, San. I’ll come. No, on second thought, pipe it to my cabin. How wide is the beam? Is it from Atropos?”

  To-Ling shook her head. “No, sir, the beam isn’t coming from any of the Fleet ships. It seems to be coming from a launch outside the ring of ships. And it’s not military quality -- the beam measures about three meters at our end.”

  Kas rolled his eyes. “Oh, no! Not some damned newsie!” He slipped a tunic over his chest and sat down at the com unit. “Oh, well. Put it through, San.”

  The man whose image appeared on Kas’ com screen was a newsie, all right. The handsome, carefully sculpted face and head of thick, wavy hair set in the latest Prime style revealed that, even before his caller began to speak.

  Kas scowled. “All right, I’m Preslin. Who are you, and what do you want?” He grated. “I’m not giving any interviews.”

  The professional smile on the husky young man’s face did not slip. “Oh, I recognize you, Hard Man Preslin,” the man began. “And much as I’d like an interview with you, that’s not why I’m calling.”

  The nickname stopped Kas for a moment. One of his men had coined the nickname “Hard Man” in a bar. Kas hated it. However, few people outside Kas’ crews had heard it. His scowl faded to a suspicious frown.

  “Last chance. Who are you, and what do you want?”

  The man shrugged. “I’d rather not give you my name,” he replied. “I’m going to be violating the ethics of my profession, and I’d rather preserve as much of my anonymity as I can.”

  Kas was puzzled. “What are you talking about? What ethics?”

  The man broke into open laughter. “Oh, we do have some, Hard Man. Not many, but some. One of them is that we report the news -- we don’t make it. I’m going to violate that by giving you, a participant, information that will almost certainly affect your actions.”

  “And why would you do that?”

  The man’s expression faded to seriousness. “For two reasons, Commodore. First, I was Fleet for six years. I don’t like the way you and yours are being treated. Second, well, let’s just say I’m one of the reasons you punched out Lu-Jenks. I figure I owe you one for that.”

  Kas was getting impatient. “If you’re going to tell me something, get on with it. I don’t have time for this nonsense.”

  A smile lit the man’s face. “Oh yes, you do, Commodore. You have all the time in the universe. You see, you’re not going anywhere for years, if ever.”

  “What are you talking about? Why do you think that?”

  The man shrugged, his smile fading. “An eavesdropped conversation between Ta-Lank and one of his aides. He intends to keep you out here for years. He hopes to keep you here until he retires -- which won’t be for twenty years or so.”

  Kas’ puzzlement deepened. “Why would he do that? What could he possibly gain?”

  “You don’t understand your position,” the man continued, shaking his head. “You keep thinking of yourselves as Fleet crews completing a mission. You’re not. You’re pawns in a power struggle. You’re hostages.”

  He shrugged. “You’re a club he can hold over the Emperor. The Emperor knows very well that Ta-Lank controls this committee and that phony medical board. If he had the committee order the destruction of your ships it would touch off an explosion that could destroy the Empire and the Emperor knows it. He cannot afford to take a chance like that. So, the committee will go on investigating, and the medical board will go on analyzing, for as long as possible. And Ta-Lank will use you to force the Emperor to go along with whatever he wants, for as long as he can. Any time the furor dies down and the Emperor tries to release you, Ta-Lank will fire up the newsie hysteria machine again.”

  Kas was thinking, hard. “I see. And what do you expect me to do about it?”

  The smile flared again. “I don’t know what to expect from you, Commodore. But I suspect that something will happen. You are not the type to just quietly sit aboard a marooned s
hip for years. Whatever you do,” he continued in a more serious tone, “I wish you good luck with it.” His image faded as he cut the laser com beam.

  Kas stared at the blank screen for several minutes. Could the newsie be right? Could all this be a move in some power chess game?

  He glanced at the clock. 0500. Pankin might be up, but this could wait until after breakfast.

  The Grand Admiral frowned when he finished relating the newsie’s information. “He could be right, Commodore,” Pankin said slowly. “It’s the best explanation I’ve heard yet for this . . . this circus. I wondered what was important enough to drag Ta-Lank out here, away from Prime. It also explains why the Emperor sent me. Ta-Lank probably decided it was vital that he come out here during the early stages, to make certain everything went smoothly.

  “That medical board, for example,” He continued. “I’m sure he didn’t foresee the furor doctor Ro-Lecton is causing, but it explains why he’s out here. He’s making sure no problems interfere with his plans.”

  Kas frowned. “So, what should I do, sir?”

  Pankin straightened. “Nothing, for the moment, Commodore. I have to think about this. I’ve also got to contact the Emperor by subspace.” He hesitated. “What do you think, Kas? Who is this newsie? Do you believe him?”

  Kas shrugged. “He has to know that we could find out his identity fairly easily. He said he was one of the reasons I punched out Lu-Jenks. I think that means he was one of the men wounded in that asteroid assault. It seems obvious that he took medical retirement, got body sculpting, and became a newsie. There can’t be many veterans that match that description.

  “But he wouldn’t give me his name. That means he trusted me not to try to find out who he was. Yes, sir. I believe him. I think he is who he says he is, and that he’s really trying to help us.”

  Pankin smiled slightly. “I agree, Commodore. All right, I will get busy on this right away. You just continue your normal routine. You’re testifying again, right?”